"The cooking of the Indian Ocean has many temperments but only one soul, and that soul is to be found in it's spices," so says chef and author Andreas Viestad, who has homes in Oslo, Norway, and outside Cape Town, South Africa. It was our responsibility to find that soul and put it on paper. Of course it was easy to draw an inspiring color palette from the wonderful photos by Norway-based Mette Randem. Our typographic treatment was inspired by the hand-painted signs we have hanging around our studio, liberated from places as different as the Indian Territories of Oklahoma and the back streets of Tijuana, each done with care, each showing a human touch, just as any hand-rendered shop sign in Sri Lanka, Oman, or Indonesia. [note: the cover shown above is not the final version, and the book will be released soon - in time for Christmas gifts. But why wait? Buy one as soon as it comes out.]

We like it when clients are happy. In this case we worked with Chronicle art director Vanessa Dina (a former student of Marc's), and no doubt she (and Chronicle) were pleased when the author thanked "Vanessa Dina and Marc English Design for turning the text and pictures into one living whole. It looks like magic, but I know it's hard work." Viestad is right about one thing: cooking up something special with the unique ingredients we were provided. But he's a bit off on the hard work part. As he knows, it's not work when you are doing something you love, and we LOVE designing books. Especially ones that have REAL content, and are brought to light by publishers that care.

Chronicle Books | Where Flavor Was Born

"The cooking of the Indian Ocean has many temperments but only one soul, and that soul is to be found in it's spices," so says chef and author Andreas Viestad, who has homes in Oslo, Norway, and outside Cape Town, South Africa. It was our responsibility to find that soul and put it on paper. Of course it was easy to draw an inspiring color palette from the wonderful photos by Norway-based Mette Randem. Our typographic treatment was inspired by the hand-painted signs we have hanging around our studio, liberated from places as different as the Indian Territories of Oklahoma and the back streets of Tijuana, each done with care, each showing a human touch, just as any hand-rendered shop sign in Sri Lanka, Oman, or Indonesia. [note: the cover shown above is not the final version, and the book will be released soon - in time for Christmas gifts. But why wait? Buy one as soon as it comes out.]

We like it when clients are happy. In this case we worked with Chronicle art director Vanessa Dina (a former student of Marc's), and no doubt she (and Chronicle) were pleased when the author thanked "Vanessa Dina and Marc English Design for turning the text and pictures into one living whole. It looks like magic, but I know it's hard work." Viestad is right about one thing: cooking up something special with the unique ingredients we were provided. But he's a bit off on the hard work part. As he knows, it's not work when you are doing something you love, and we LOVE designing books. Especially ones that have REAL content, and are brought to light by publishers that care.

"The cooking of the Indian Ocean has many temperments but only one soul, and that soul is to be found in it's spices," so says chef and author Andreas Viestad, who has homes in Oslo, Norway, and outside Cape Town, South Africa. It was our responsibility to find that soul and put it on paper. Of course it was easy to draw an inspiring color palette from the wonderful photos by Norway-based Mette Randem. Our typographic treatment was inspired by the hand-painted signs we have hanging around our studio, liberated from places as different as the Indian Territories of Oklahoma and the back streets of Tijuana, each done with care, each showing a human touch, just as any hand-rendered shop sign in Sri Lanka, Oman, or Indonesia. [note: the cover shown above is not the final version, and the book will be released soon - in time for Christmas gifts. But why wait? Buy one as soon as it comes out.]

We like it when clients are happy. In this case we worked with Chronicle art director Vanessa Dina (a former student of Marc's), and no doubt she (and Chronicle) were pleased when the author thanked "Vanessa Dina and Marc English Design for turning the text and pictures into one living whole. It looks like magic, but I know it's hard work." Viestad is right about one thing: cooking up something special with the unique ingredients we were provided. But he's a bit off on the hard work part. As he knows, it's not work when you are doing something you love, and we LOVE designing books. Especially ones that have REAL content, and are brought to light by publishers that care.